Food Allergies: A Complete Guide for Eating When Your Life Depends on It

Posing the questions that anyone with food allergies will think to ask—and then some— Food Allergies provides practical, emotional, and scientific guidance on the topics that affect your life. Allergy expert Scott H. Sicherer addresses the full spectrum of food allergies, from mild to life threatening, from single foods to food families, clearing/i>

Overview

Posing the questions that anyone with food allergies will think to ask—and then some— Food Allergies provides practical, emotional, and scientific guidance on the topics that affect your life. Allergy expert Scott H. Sicherer addresses the full spectrum of food allergies, from mild to life threatening, from single foods to food families, clearing up misconceptions along the way. He explains how exposure to foods can bring about an allergic response, describes the symptoms of food allergy, and illuminates how food allergies develop. He also recommends tests for diagnosing both food allergies and chronic health problems caused by food allergies—such as eczema, hives, and respiratory and gastrointestinal symptoms.

Food Allergies thoroughly explains how to prevent exposure to a known allergen at home, at school, in restaurants, and elsewhere and what to do if exposure occurs, including how to handle an anaphylactic emergency. Dr. Sicherer also reviews food reactions that are not allergic (such as lactose intolerance), advises how to get adequate nutrition when you must avoid dietary staples, and discusses whether allergies ever go away (they do—and then sometimes they return).

Editorial Reviews

Library Journal

Allergy expert Sicherer (pediatrics, Mount Sinai Hosp.; Understanding and Managing Your Child's Food Allergies) provides another overview of food allergies in his new title—this time for a general audience. The question-and-answer format makes the book easy to use as a reference for those beginning their research into food allergies. Sicherer focuses on debunking the myths. He defines the term allergy (it requires an immune response), distinguishes between food allergies and other chronic health issues caused by food (lactose intolerance is not an allergy, for example), and discusses the latest research on prevention ("Overall, there appears to be no strong evidence that the mother's restriction of allergens during pregnancy is preventative"). Most questions are answered briefly, with "Delving Deeper" sections taking on more complex questions (i.e., "How do I know if I should inject epinephrine?"). VERDICT Readers seeking a quick and easy guide to food allergies to keep on hand should look no further. This book is practical and informative without being overwhelming.—Mindy Rhiger, Minneapolis

AsthmaAllergiesChildren.com - Henry Ehrlich

Wouldn’t it be nice to have a resource written by someone who has heard it all before, and can give the best medical information in clear language? Your prayers have been answered. Here in 279 well-organized pages are almost all the 'q’s' you might want to ask, and the clear, concise, and wise 'a’s' you need.

Doody's Review Service

Reviewer: Andrea Garaud, MD (Ochsner Clinic Foundation)Description: In this book, an allergy expert addresses all questions concerning food allergies in a question-and-answer format, much like an interview.Purpose: It is meant to be a comprehensive guide for those with food allergies, as well as for those caring for someone with food allergies. A book like this is needed, because this is a very confusing and often misunderstood topic.Audience: This is a great reference for patients, parents, primary care physicians, teachers, and school nurses - anyone who wants trusted answers to their food allergy questions.Features: The book covers a spectrum of questions about food allergy: specific foods, testing, treatment, and acute problems such as anaphylaxis, chronic problems such as hives and GI issues, prevention, avoidance, and lifestyle changes. I like the question-and-answer format - it mimics a patient speaking to an allergist. It does present the problem of repetition, as some of the same information is found in more than one chapter. However, repetition can also help retaining the information.Assessment: I recommend this book to anyone who has or treats someone with food allergies. The information is reliable and helpful, from an expert on the topic. The book is easy to read, covers the full range of topics, and ends with helpful resources (websites, handouts, support groups). This is a good read for all interested in this topic.

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What People are Saying About This

Anne Muñoz-Furlong

Dr. Sicherer answers all the questions parents and others have about food allergies. From practical considerations, to emotional issues, to the latest in the search for a cureit’s all here. The easy-to-read Question and Answer format will make this a reference book you reach for time and again. I wholeheartedly recommend it!

F. Estelle R. Simons

A must-read for teens and adults with food allergies, and for anyone living with or caring for someone with food allergies. Here they will find answers to many of their questions as well as interesting case histories and essential principles of diagnosis and treatment, including a realistic overview of future approaches.

from the Foreword by Maria Laura Acebal

Destined to be earmarked and underlined, these pages are an incredible resource for food-allergic individuals as well as for parents, families, and schoolsin short, anyone who cares about someone with food allergies. And, because I love someone with food allergies, I will recommend it for years to come.

A. Wesley Burks

Dr. Sicherer draws on his years of experience as a master clinician, researcher, author, and thought leader in this field to provide practical advice and countless insights that are sure to provide the reader with the knowledge needed to understand and manage food allergies. The Question and Answer format makes this comprehensive book highly accessible to people with food allergies and parents of children with food allergies, while the extensive insights and depth of detail make it an important resource for health care providers as well. Dr. Sicherer describes in detail how to integrate food allergies into a family lifestyle. A family’s ability to anticipate a food reaction and then treat the symptoms if they happenand not expect a reaction to happen all the timehelps a family cope thoughtfully with food allergies in a child.

from the Introduction by Hugh A. Sampson

The information in this book is so comprehensive and timely that it should be required reading not only for adults with food allergies and parents of children with food allergies, but also for physicians, teachers, school nurses, camp personnel, spouses, and everyone who plays a role in caring for those with food allergies. It will help them to understand and more effectively and safely manage food allergies, which is why I certainly plan to keep a copy of this book in my clinic and recommend it.

Amie Rappoport McKenna

Food Allergies is required reading for patients, parents, and physicians who want to help patients who have food allergiesyoung or old. Parents should keep a copy of this book next to Understanding and Managing Your Child's Food Allergies (also by Dr. Sicherer) so they can better understand food allergies, obtain better medical care, and ultimately enjoy a better quality of life. As a parent of children with life-threatening food allergies, these are my essential reference books.

Gwen Smith

In this definitive guide to food allergies, Scott Sicherer offers his readers a complete food allergy education. He demystifies everything from science to symptoms to label reading, and offers encouragement for living life to its fullestin spite of food allergies. Destined to be the go-to resource for patients and parents striving to live well with food allergies.

Phil Lieberman

An indispensable book for anyone who has food allergies or any parent of a child with food allergies. As an allergist treating food-allergic patients every day, I keep this book within easy reach, on my bookshelf. It’s a unique source of knowledge for those of us who treat such patients.

Meet the Author

Scott Sicherer, M.D., is a professor of pediatrics and chief of the Division of Pediatric Allergy and Immunology at Mount Sinai School of Medicine, New York. He is also a researcher in the Jaffe Food Allergy Institute at Mount Sinai. He is author of Understanding and Managing Your Child’s Food Allergies, also published by Johns Hopkins. To learn more about the author's research and clinical work, visit Mount Sinai Jaffe Food Allergy Institute on Facebook.